lightning whelk egg casing

Great find! We saw these all over the beach on Sanibel this month. A fellow sheller on Instagram told us what they were.

Unless, of course, the Knobbed Whelk has started to move into the Gulf... I guess that remains to be seen.

Hi Nancy, you are correct. I didn't realize that they didn't occur in the Gulf of Mexico and I couldn't find any info on them being there either. Thanks for setting the record straight. Perhaps it is merely a play of the water that is making the eggs look smoother.

Whatever the case it is a pretty cool spotting!

Forest Dragon raises an interesting question. I agree the egg casing does look less "spikey" than a typical lightning whelk and very well could be that of the knobbed whelk. The puzzle is that the knobbed whelk is native to the North Atlantic and the lightning whelk is native to the Gulf of Mexico. I understand that the knobbed whelk is found on the east coast of Florida, but I can't seem to find any evidence of it occuring in the Gulf.

Knobbed Whelk scientific name: Busycon carica (forgot to include that in my previous comment. Sorry!

Cool find! I only find them washed up on the beach.

Possibly Knobbed Whelk egg casing. Lightning Whelk strands seem more "spikey".

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning_w...

Great Picture

The structure itself is quite sturdy and not prone to break or tear. But their surfaces are pliable, and if crushed the eggs and developing larvae can be damaged or killed. And thank you for seeing and sharing the value and experience of Project Noah.

Fabulous! Thank you. My folks live near the preserve and I was trying to explain the value of PN. You helped make my case! A question about the casings...I was kayaking when I saw them - along with many others yesterday - though I was careful not to knock them with my paddle, do they break easily?

Crown conch egg casings are similar, but have smooth, flatter discs.
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/935...